"The central government staunchly supports the government of the special administrative region in curbing the activities of Hong Kong independence," Xinhua quoted Mr Xi as saying.

SUCCESS

Hong Kong's success under the "one country, two systems" agreement, under which it returned to Beijing's rule, has been obvious for all to see, Mr Xi added, though he admitted not all was plain sailing.

"'One country, two systems' is a new undertaking, and it's normal that in its practice, new situations and problems may arise," he said, without elaborating.